The Ocean Cleanup Project seeks to dismantle the Great Pacific Garbage Patch , guided by an ambitious design concept and the development of new technology to tackle the pollution threat. First conceived in 2013 by aerospace engineering student Boyan Slat, the Ocean Cleanup Project has recently announced the location of its home base, a former naval station in San Francisco Bay . From here, the Ocean Cleanup Project will manufacture, then launch, the first of its giant trash-collecting booms. With any luck, the inaugural trash-busting voyage will set sail in mid-2018. In addition to its strategic location, the former Alameda Naval Station in San Francisco Bay is a location that carries special significance for Slat. “Next to Alameda’s major historical military significance, it was here that the famous car chase scene in The Matrix Reloaded was filmed, and it was home to some of the best experiments of my favorite childhood TV show, MythBusters,” said Slat . “We’re honored to be allowed to use this site as the assembly yard for the world’s first ocean cleanup system. Hopefully, we will make some history here as well.” Related: Could France-sized ocean garbage patch become 196th nation? The Ocean Cleanup Project ‘s 2,000-foot-long system harnesses natural currents to catch trash in passive, strategically located arms, under which wildlife should be able to swim. While some have criticized the project for the potential environmental damage and cost, the group has committed to undergoing environmental impact studies at every stage in development and production. The team has already conducted aerial surveys of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and developed a prototype system in the Netherlands. By the end of this year, we should know more about whether the Ocean Clean Project’s design is an effective tool to fight pollution. Via New Atlas Images via The Ocean Cleanup Project

Comments Off on Chemical Contamination Threatens to Turn San Francisco Bay into a Toxic Soup

San Francisco is world-famous for its clam chowder, but a new report from the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Board threatens to make the city notorious for another, less appetizing kind of soup. In their annual assessment, “ Pulse of the Bay ,” researchers found significant levels of pesticides, herbicides, flame retardants, and a host of other nasty chemicals in the water. While none of the toxins were marked with the highest designation of concern, several were assigned the level directly below and show no signs of decreasing. Read the rest of Chemical Contamination Threatens to Turn San Francisco Bay into a Toxic Soup Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg Post tags: alkylphenols , chemical regulation , clam chowder , insecticide contamination , mercury , pbde flame retardants , perfluoro-octane sulfate , pesticide cotamination , polybrominated diphenyl ether , pulse of the bay , pyrethroids , San Francisco , san francisco bay , san francisco bay regional water quality board , toxic chemicals , toxic soup , united states

Comments Off on Whale Spotter App Seeks to Reduce Collisions with Ships in San Francisco Bay

Whale and commercial ship collisions are a tragic side effect of global shipping, but a new app called Whale Spotter has been designed to arrest such occurrences. In the busy ports of the San Francisco Bay Area , more than 7,300 large ships head through the Golden Gate each year. Their routes often coincide with whales swimming along the continental shelf, where their food supply is plentiful. In order to reduce the amount of collisions and whale deaths each year, government officials teamed up with sailors, fishermen and marine scientists to build an app that can spot whales on a user-friendly, interactive map. Read the rest of Whale Spotter App Seeks to Reduce Collisions with Ships in San Francisco Bay Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg Post tags: clean tech , commercial shipping , global shipping , green gadgets , green tech , San Francisco , san francisco bay , whale collisions , whale spotter , whale spotter application , whale spotting , whales

Comments Off on Silicon Valley at Significant Risk of Sea Level Rise Due to Climate Change

Silicon Valley office building photo from Shutterstock Even the Internet is not immune to the effects of climate change . Many of the world’s most famous tech giants, such as Facebook , Oracle, Google , Intel, and LinkedIn are at risk of flooding due to rising seas. A recent piece by Scientific American’s ClimateWire detailed the risks that companies face from global warming. Many areas of Silicon Valley are below sea level and close to the water, and a number facilities are vulnerable to fluctuating coastlines. Palo Alto, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, San Jose and the iconic Highway 1 could all be subject to massive flooding in the near future. Despite the threat of soggy facilities, Silicon Valley’s biggest names have been mostly silent as to plans of how to deal with the rising Pacific. Read the rest of Silicon Valley at Significant Risk of Sea Level Rise Due to Climate Change Permalink | Add to del.icio.us | digg Post tags: Army Corps of Engineers , Climate Change , climatewire , Facebook , global warming , Google , highway 1 , intel , internet , LinkedIn , mike mielke , oracle , Pacific , palo alto , san francisco bay , san jose , santa clara , scientific american , sea level rise , sen dianne feinstein , silicon valley , silicon valley leadership group , sunnyvale , valley of heart’s delight